Who put the "Old" in Auld Lang Syne?

I didn't see the New Year ushered in as I was overcome by sleep. Sleep, when you've been deprived of it, is a commodity worth way more than watching the crystal ball full of lights drop. I happily went to bed before fireworks or gunfire. Don't get me wrong- I am absolutely thrilled to be in a new year and a new decade. I am just old enough to know it will still be new in the morning and unlike the days of my youth, I can wait. Facing a new year hangover free is one of the many things I like about being older and wiser. One of the things that I like best about being a new creation in Christ is not having to wear the shame of all those New Year's Eve parties I went to when I was young a stupid, whether I can remember the details or not.

So, who can answer this for me? Why is it on a perfectly good holiday, one which conveniently falls on a rainy day, the television programming devoid of anything worth watching? I guess it hasn't been a total loss, I got to see the Eloi learn to fight back against the Morlocks for the twenty hundredth time in my life. Who isn't in for watching old movies with bad special effects? The 60s were chockablock full of 'em. If you haven't a clue what I am talking about....don't hate me because I was born at the right time- you know you're envious. If you know exactly what I am talking about here's the real question; if you were George, which three books would you have taken?

It may shock some of my friends to know it but one of the books I would take is a short read by Ray Bradbury entitled "Dandelion Wine." That book more than any other taught me to connect with an author because of connecting with one of the author's characters. In retrospect that's probably because the book is semi-autobiographical. I was too young to know or care about that then. Dandelion Wine forever changed how I read books. I was still in elementary school and that summer I read Catcher in the Rye; To Kill a Mockingbird; Lord of the Flies; Animal Farm; Call of the Wild; White Fang; Of Mice and Men; The Red Pony; The Good Earth; and The Yearling. I learned that summer that not all books should be made into movies and that no movie is as good as the book if the book was good to begin with.... some story lines are best left to a 2 hour movie- one with lots of special effects to divert your attention.

Speaking of attention, I plan to read more this year. I want to revisit some classics and find some recent material worth reading. I also want to spend more time reading my bible instead of reading about the bible. I have a really bad habit of reading what an author thinks about a particular area of Scripture rather than trying to slog through and see what I think about it. Commentaries and extra-biblical resources are no replacement for actually reading the Word.

I am trying to think of a bad habit to replace. It's not that I am having a shortage of them it's that I don't know which of the many i have would be of the best benefit for me to replace. I know myself far to well than to think I will suddenly change and morph into "Susie Spiritual!" I would like to become more keenly focused on the things that matter. I guess that's a good start.

Right now I need a nap. Who did put the "Old" in "Auld Lang Syne?

Character Flaws, Sin and Remediation

I have been thinking about my last post in which I offered to talk about how having a job has shown or magnified my character flaws. Before I do though, I want to distinguish between character flaws and sin. My character flaws predispose me to sin in certain areas more readily than in others. Indulging in my character flaws is sinful. Entertaining the idea of indulging my character flaws is sinful. They are the weaknesses in me where my flesh makes itself known by screaming, "You know you want to!!" Too often I hear Christians lamenting that they "make mistakes" or are victims of their genetic make-up and intimate that they should, therefore, be excused from culpability for being prone to certain activities. Our cultural dependence on a medical model to define our behavior has given many what they see as a plausible excuse for sin. I don't see that caveat in the Word. For Christians, the Word is always our standard. It is the standard by which all will be j

Fear Down, Hope and Peace to Go!

Last night I had the honor and privilege to present some information to the women of my church. I cannot begin to tell you how much I love and appreciate them. The seminar I did was on fear. God is clever and He had me present the information to them because I needed it. It's not that I don't want to study things for my own benefit and growth, but whenever I do a topical study to teach it, I see how badly I needed it and how much more I have to repent of than I realized. Sometimes you don't know what you don't know. That's a topic I want to return to in another post. I want to talk about the ladies for a moment. They are an incredibly loving group of women. Women who seek God and are teachable. They have gone out of their way to include me and love on me, which speaks volumes of their characters because I am not all that lovable. I am not being self-deprecating here. I am a mix of endearing and maddening qualities like anyone else. What I am telling you is

Super Church a song for the Emergent-sy

In the early 70s I was in a youth choir at my church. Our youth pastor was a musician and his way of connecting with us as a group was through the choir and music. Somehow there was an affiliation between him and The Continental Singers, New Hope and Jeremiah People. He was worked with Moishe Rosen of Jews for Jesus too, I think. Are any of these names familiar to you? Though I remember the church fondly I was a profoundly lost and troubled young woman during my years there. That and time have muddled the memories quite a bit. Today I was digging through some old paperwork and one of the books to the musical we did. It's Getting Late For the Great Planet Earth, a folk rock oratorio by Cam Floria. Yes, that's right. Cam Floria put Hal Lindsey to music. There's a lot to laugh about and some to groan about but as I was looking through the songs and remembering, I found this little ditty and I only wish I could sing it for you. Just remember that this is circa 1972 and even th

rambling rosemarie

Search This Blog